russian cruise missile strikes poland

Poland activates aircraft after Russian missile incursion during wave of attacks on Ukraine

A Russian long-range cruise missile heading for western Ukraine briefly entered Polish territory overnight, prompting the country’s armed forces to launch “all necessary procedures” to protect its airspace, including activating Polish and allied aviation.

The incident came as Russia launched a punishing wave of missile and drone strikes on Ukraine. On Friday, Russia attacked power facilities throughout Ukraine, triggering outages and killing at least three people.

The missile, moving at a speed of almost 500 mph, was in Polish airspace for 39 seconds at 4:23 a.m. (11:23 p.m. ET Saturday), going about a mile into the country, the country’s military said.

Even a mistaken Russian missile incursion into the airspace of NATO-member Poland runs the risk of escalating and widening the war next door.

On Sunday, Poland’s Foreign Affairs Ministry promised it would “demand explanations from Russia in connection with another violation of the country’s airspace.”

“Above all, we call on the Russian Federation to stop terrorist air attacks on the inhabitants and territory of Ukraine,” the ministry said in a statement on X .

The last time something like this happened, in December 2023, Poland summoned the Russian charge d’affaires , demanding an explanation.

Earlier, Ukrainian news outlets reported on Telegram that during a major attack on Lviv, Russian missiles were flying close to the border with Poland.

“Polish and allied aircraft have been activated, which may result in increased noise levels, especially in the south-eastern part of the country,” Poland’s armed forces said on X.

Russia has been pounding Ukraine for days in attacks  portrayed by Moscow  as revenge for Ukrainian attacks during its recent presidential election .

“For the third pre-dawn morning this week, all of Ukraine is under an air alert and has been advised to seek shelter,” U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink posted on X early Sunday. “Russia continues to indiscriminately launch drones and missiles with no regard for millions of civilians, violating international law.”

The Ukrainian armed forces said 29 cruise missiles and 28 Iranian “Shahed” drones were involved in the attacks overnight. Of those, Ukraine downed 18 cruise missiles and 25 drones, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

Russian officials did not immediately comment on the events overnight.

Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said on Telegram there were no attacks on the city, but some 20 missiles and seven attack drones had been launched against the broader Lviv region, targeting “critical infrastructure.”

Several blasts were heard in Kyiv after its defense systems repelled strikes, according to Vitali Klitschko, the city’s mayor.

Ukraine air defense forces destroyed about a dozen Russia-launched missiles over Kyiv and in the vicinity of the capital, Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said on the Telegram.

Preliminary information showed no casualties or major damage as a result of the attacks, he said.

Separately, the Ukrainian military said it had hit two Russian landing ships during strikes on the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

NATO: A missile that left 2 dead in Poland likely came from Ukrainian defense system

This blog is no longer being updated. For the latest news on the Russia-Ukraine war, tune into your local NPR member station or download the NPR One app.

Polish President Andrezej Duda said the missile that hit Przewodow, a village near the Ukrainian border, was "probably an accident" from Ukrainian air defenses. President Joe Biden, who called an emergency meeting with G7 and NATO allies yesterday, also said it was "unlikely" the missile was fired from Russia, but he'd support a complete investigation.

Here's what we're following today:

• Standing down on Article 4: The Polish government said it may not be necessary to invoke Article 4 of the NATO treaty, which allows allies to "consult together" if any of the countries are under threat.
• World leaders' reactions: Russia's Defense Ministry said that any suggestion its weapons had struck Poland was an "intentional provocation."
• Damage in Ukraine: The Ukrainian air force said Russia fired about 100 missiles at Ukraine over the course of several hours on Tuesday afternoon and evening, leaving half of Kyiv without power.

Joint Chiefs chairman downplays previous comments about Ukraine-Russia negotiations

By Andrew Sussman

Seeking to clarify prior comments that there is a window for negotiation for ending the war, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley underscored that “Ukraine is going to continue to take the fight to the Russians.”

Milley told the Economic Club of New York last week, "When there's an opportunity to negotiate , when peace can be achieved, seize it."

Milley added, however, that while the probability of Russia achieving its objectives is "close to zero,” they do maintain "significant combat power inside Ukraine.”

Milley said that recent military gains by Ukraine were "relatively small compared to the whole” and that the probability of a Ukrainian full victory is "not high militarily.”

“You want to negotiate from a position of strength,” Milley said, and right now the Russian military is "really hurting bad.”

Pentagon says Russia ultimately bears responsibility for Poland blast

Echoing statements by other U.S. officials today, senior defense officials said at a press conference today that they have seen nothing to contradict Polish assessments that an explosion near the border with Ukraine was likely the result of a Ukrainian air defense missile.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said of the explosion that “Russia bears ultimate responsibility for this incident,” and called it another reminder of “Russia’s war of choice."

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley added that yesterday's barrage of missiles was likely the largest wave seen since the start of the war, causing "unnecessary suffering with the civilian population” and called the attack on civilian infrastructure a "war crime.”

The National Security Council has 'full confidence' in the Polish president's account

By Emily Olson

The National Security Council issued a statement saying the White House believes "nothing contradicts" the Polish president's statements that the missile strike was likely the result of a Ukrainian air defense missile.

"We have full confidence in the Polish government’s investigation of the explosion near their border with Ukraine, and we commend them for the professional and deliberate manner in which they are conducting it," wrote spokesperson Adrienne Watson.

"We will continue to assess and share any new information transparently as it becomes available. We will also continue to stay in close touch with the Ukrainians regarding any information they have to fill out the picture.

"That said, whatever the final conclusions may be, it is clear that the party ultimately responsible for this tragic incident is Russia, which launched a barrage of missiles on Ukraine specifically intended to target civilian infrastructure. Ukraine had — and has — every right to defend itself."

The U.S. Department of Defense is also scheduled to hold a press conference shortly. Stay tuned for updates.

It's now early evening in Ukraine, and much of Kyiv is still without power

By Greg Myre

Emily Olson

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke in a brief video on Wednesday morning, wishing citizens a "normal day" after Tuesday's missile barrage.

Russia fired roughly 100 missiles into Ukraine in just a couple of hours on Tuesday afternoon. Ukraine says it shot down about 70 of the incoming missiles, in line with other recent attacks.

But in the capital, Kyiv, a city with around 3 million residents, half the homes and businesses were still without power midday on Wednesday, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Other large cities were in similar condition, if not worse.

One woman was killed in Kyiv when a missile slammed into her apartment in a residential area near the center of the city. There were no obvious military, government or energy facilities in the area, in apparent contrast to comments from Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov, who described the attack as "precision" strikes on Ukrainian military and energy infrastructure.

It was not clear why the building would have been targeted, or if perhaps a Ukrainian air defense system hit a Russian missile, with the remnants of that Russian missile hitting the building.

Ukrainians have been rapidly repairing the power outages inflicted by the Russians, but the sheer number of attacks has strained the country's capacity to keep up.

Russia has damaged around 40% of the country's electricity system, according to Ukrainian officials.

➡️ Read more here.

Russia's Foreign Ministry summoned Poland's ambassador in Moscow, according to state media

By Charles Maynes

Russia’s Foreign Ministry echoed earlier Kremlin comments in expressing outrage over what it called a western response that, “in unison," rushed to “spread absolutely false accusatory assurances that Russia could be guilty” of the attack.

“We consider the bacchanalia of coordinated actions to be taken within the framework of a systemic Western campaign around Ukraine,” said the ministry in a statement released online.

“It appears that the authorities in Kyiv will use any opportunity to accuse Russia in an effort to consolidate Western support against the backdrop of western patrons tiring of the Zelenskyy regime,” continued the statement.

The Foreign Ministry later summoned Poland’s ambassador in Moscow, according to state media reports. 

Ukraine officials say they will help with the investigation

Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, tweeted that the country advocated for further investigation into the missile incident and requested immediate access to the explosion site.

He did not say whether the missile that landed in Poland and killed two came from Ukraine.

"We are ready to hand over evidence of the Russian trace that we have," Danilov said, "We are expecting information from our partners."

We advocate for a joint examination of the incident with the missile’s landing in Poland. We are ready to hand over evidence of the russian trace that we have. We are expecting information from our partners, based on which a conclusion was made that it’s a 🇺🇦 air defense missile. — Oleksiy Danilov (@OleksiyDanilov) November 16, 2022

A Ukrainian Air Force spokesman, Yuri Ihnat, also said on Wednesday that “a proper analysis is underway. The Air Force will support [the investigation] as much as possible, specialists will be involved if necessary, and we will provide certain materials," local media report.

G-20 countries are split on support for Ukraine

By Nishant Dahiya

The G-20 issued an official communique as meetings came to a close today with countries split on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, highlighting the tensions and splits the war has caused this year.

The communique states that "most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy,” but also noted that "there were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions" and recognized that the G-20 is not the forum to resolve security issues.

The G-20 is comprised of many Western nations — all of whom have condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine and slapped sanctions on Russia — and others like China, India Saudi Arabia and South Africa, who have neither condemned nor sanctioned Russia.

Russia is also a member of the G-20, and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attended the summit, in Bali, Indonesia

News of the missile strike in Poland — and Russia’s barrage in Ukraine on Tuesday, when it fired nearly 100 missiles in one day — arrived as leaders were meeting on the last day of the summit. President Biden and countries in the G-7 group of like-minded nations held an emergency roundtable, and they reiterated their support for Ukraine and Poland.

"And the moment when the world had come together at the G-20 to urge de-escalation, Russia continues to show an escalation in Ukraine, while we're in meeting,” Biden said to reporters after the meeting.

Polish residents say 'something has to be done'

By Rob Schmitz

NPR's international correspondent Rob Schmitz is in Warsaw, Poland, roughly 200 miles away from the site of the missile incident in Przewodow.

Those on the street today expressed fear that this wouldn't be the only deadly blast in their country, which borders Ukraine.

“To be honest, I don’t know what to think. On one hand, we don’t want to be too paranoid about this, but we also need to be vigilant and not forget this," said Zuzanna Kaluga, a student studying pharmacology.

"I had a test for biology today and I thought to myself: Should I be studying now? or should I be preparing for war?”

Sebastian Szelag told Schmitz that regardless of where the missile came from, "Poland’s government needs to do something. ... It feels like the government is washing their hands of it.”

“NATO is a deterrent and it adds to our security, but Poland has historically been left alone. I don’t know if NATO troops would run away, but we need to stand up to this ourselves.”

Here is the spot in Poland where the missile landed

By Carol Ritchie

The village of Przewodów, where a missile landed and killed two residents, lies just inside Poland near the border with Ukraine.

The Associated Press reports from Przewodów that the missile fell on farmland in an area where grain was drying.

Ewa Byra, the primary school director in the eastern village of Przewodów, where the missile struck, said she knew both men who were killed, AP reports — one was the husband of a school employee, the other the father of a former pupil.

The U.N. says both Ukrainian and Russian prisoners of war have been subjected to torture

By Lisa Schlein

The U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported this week that both Ukrainian and Russian prisoners of war have been subjected to torture and ill-treatment by their captors.

Chief investigator Matilda Bogner says the U.N. interviewed Ukrainian and Russian POWs over the past several months. Bogner said the vast of majority of Ukrainian POWs said they were tortured and subjected to horrific abuse in Russian internment centers.

"Torture and ill-treatment were not only used to coerce prisoners of war to give military information or statements about alleged crimes," she said. "They were, interviewees told us, used on a daily basis to intimidate and humiliate them.”

Bogner said investigators also have documented many cases of Russian POWs who were subjected to torture and ill-treatment by Ukrainian armed forces. She said U.N. monitors plan to investigate alleged war crimes by Russian forces in the city of Kherson.

Germany will offer to help Poland patrol its airspace

By Esme Nicholson

A German defense spokesman said this morning that Berlin will offer surveillance support to Poland’s air defense.

Spokesman Christian Thiels said that Berlin could send German Eurofighters as early as Thursday, according to local media. Thiels also said the Eurofighters could remain based at German air bases.

Another spokesperson also said this morning that establishing a no-fly zone would pose a threat of direct confrontation between Russia and NATO, adding that “together with our allies, we want to avoid a further escalation of this war in Ukraine.”

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says a full investigation into the blasts near Poland’s border with Ukraine must be allowed to take place before any conclusions are drawn.

Speaking to German broadcaster NTV this morning, Scholz said, “there’s no sense in spreading rumors and making assumptions that don’t prove to be true.”

He added that de-escalation is key and that Russia can take a decisive step by withdrawing troops and entering into talks and peace negotiations, although he warned that any peace deal must not be a diktat (an imposed decree without popular consent)   against Ukraine.

NATO secretary-general says Russia still bears responsibility for the strike in Poland

NATO ambassadors convened in Brussels on Wednesday to discuss Tuesday's missile strike in Poland.

Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said there is currently “no indication that the blasts were the result of a deliberate attack” and that there is “no indication that Russia is preparing offensive military actions against NATO.”

Stoltenberg said that while an investigation is still ongoing, “preliminary analysis suggests the incident was likely caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile fired to defend Ukrainian territory against Russian cruise missile attacks,” adding, “but let me be clear: this is not Ukraine’s fault. Russia bears ultimate responsibility as it continues its illegal war against Ukraine.”

Stoltenberg also expressed strong support for Poland, adding that NATO has significantly increased its presence in the eastern part of the alliance. He said he spoke with Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday night and that they agreed on the importance of waiting for the outcome of the investigation.

Stoltenberg added that there has been no call for an Article 4 meeting based on current findings.

Asked whether the fact this missile hit Polish territory represented a failure of NATO’s defense capabilities, Stoltenberg said the fact that NATO’s defense systems did not recognize the missile as an offensive weapon speaks to the likelihood that it was a Ukrainian air defense missile, adding that the incident “doesn’t say anything about NATO’s ability to defend against attacks.”

Stoltenberg also reiterated NATO’s support for Ukraine in its right to self-defense, pointing out that “if Russia stops fighting, we will have peace. If President Zelenskyy and the Ukraine stops, it will cease to exist as an independent, sovereign nation.”

Kremlin spokesman calls the incident 'hysterical, rabid and Russophobic'

The Kremlin took something of a victory lap on Wednesday as NATO officials acknowledged that Ukraine, rather than Russia, had likely lobbed the missile that struck inside the territory of alliance member Poland, killing two people.

In his daily call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed to the incident as the latest “hysterical, rabid, and Russophobic” reaction by the West.

“Representatives from different countries essentially made pronouncements without having any exact understanding of the facts,” said Peskov.

Peskov, in particular, accused Polish officials of having “every means to immediately say that we’re talking about fragments from an S-300. And therefore every specialist would have understood that this could not be a rocket that belongs to the Russia military.”

On Wednesday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its specialists had studied images of the explosion in Poland and concluded rocket fragments were from an S-300 surface-to-air missile system used by Ukraine.

The ministry’s spokesman, Igor Konsehnkov, also accused Western powers of “an intentional provocation with the goal of escalating the situation.”

“We want to emphasize, precision strikes were launched against targets only on the territory of Ukraine and at a distance no closer than 35 km (21 miles) from the Ukrainian-Polish border,” said Konashenkov.

The Kremlin’s Peskov also complimented the “fairly reserved reaction of the Americans” to the explosion inside Poland — an apparent reference to President Biden’s initial warning the rocket was “unlikely” to have been fired from Russia.

The U.S. also believes the missile was fired by Ukraine and likely an accident

The Associated Press is reporting that three anonymous American officials said that, based on just an initial assessment, this was a Ukrainian-fired missile that was supposed to intercept and destroy an incoming Russian missile.

Speaking yesterday, President Biden said it was "unlikely" that the missile was fired from Russia, but he said the information was "preliminary" and that the U.S. and Poland's allies would support a full investigation.

Russia filed a barrage of around 100 missiles into Ukraine on Tuesday, largely targeting Ukraine's electricity grid.

Ukraine says it shot down about 70 of the incoming missiles, which is in line with other recent attacks. But every so often, Ukraine's air-missile defenses can cause debris to land somewhere unexpected, as it did in Moldova last month.

Poland's president says the missile strike was not intentionally aimed at his country

By Joanna Kakissis

Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, told reporters on Wednesday that a deadly missile explosion on the border with Ukraine was not an intentional attack on Poland.

Duda said there’s no evidence that Russia fired the missile that landed in Poland. Instead, he said the rocket appeared to be a surface-to-air missile that was likely launched by Ukraine to protect itself from a barrage of Russian attacks on Tuesday.

“There’s absolutely no indication that this was an attack on Poland or that this rocket was intentionally directed to hit Poland’s territory,” he said. “Most likely, it was an unfortunate mishap.”

Speaking at the same press conference, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Marawiecki said that it may not be necessary to trigger NATO’s article 4, which launches a consultation of NATO allies when a member-state feels threatened.

Poland demands explanation from Russia after a missile enters its airspace

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Poland demanded an explanation from Russia on Sunday after one of its missiles strayed briefly into Polish airspace during a major missile attack on Ukraine, prompting the NATO member to activate F-16 fighter jets.

It was Russia’s third big missile attack on Ukraine in the past four days, and the second to target the capital, Kyiv.

The governor of the Lviv region, Maksym Kozytskyi, said on the Telegram platform that critical infrastructure was hit, but he didn’t specify what was struck. No deaths or injuries were reported.

Later, authorities said that rescuers had just put out a fire at a critical infrastructure facility in the Lviv region, which had been attacked with missiles and drones at night and in the morning.

The head of Kyiv’s military administration, Serhiy Popko, said Russia used cruise missiles launched from Tu-95MS strategic bombers. An air alert in the capital lasted for more than two hours as rockets entered Kyiv in groups from the north.

He said the attacks were launched from the Engels district in the Saratov region of Russia.

According to preliminary data, there were no casualties or damage in the capital, he said.

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Russia attacks power facilities across Ukraine, including the largest hydroelectric plant, causing widespread outages and killing at least five people.

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Armed Forces Operational Command of Poland, a member of NATO, said in a statement that there was a violation of Polish airspace at 4:23 a.m. by one of the cruise missiles launched by Russia against towns in western Ukraine.

The object entered near Oserdow, a village in an agricultural region near the border with Ukraine, and stayed in Polish airspace for 39 seconds, the statement said. It wasn’t immediately clear if Russia intended for the missile to enter Poland’s airspace. Cruise missiles are able to change their trajectory to evade air defense systems.

Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz later told reporters in a televised news conference that the Russian missile would have been shot down had there been any indication that it was heading towards a target in Poland.

He said that Polish authorities monitored the attack on Ukraine and were in contact with Ukrainian counterparts. Polish and NATO F-16s were activated as part of the strategic response.

He said the missile penetrated Polish airspace about a kilometer or two (a half-mile to around a mile) as Russia was targeting the region around Lviv in western Ukraine.

“As last night’s rocket attack on Ukraine was one of the most intense since the beginning of the Russian aggression, all the strategic procedures were launched on time and the object was monitored until it left the Polish airspace,” he said.

On the diplomatic front, the Polish foreign ministry said that it would “demand explanations from the Russian Federation in connection with another violation of the country’s airspace.”

In war-torn Ukraine, a woman searches for her husband. Will she find him?

In a Ukrainian village, a woman wants only one thing: to find her husband, who disappeared shortly after Russia’s war on Ukraine started two years ago.

Feb. 24, 2024

“Above all, we call on the Russian Federation to stop the terrorist air attacks on the inhabitants and territory of Ukraine, end the war, and address the country’s internal problems,” the statement read.

Andrzej Szejna, a deputy foreign minister, told the TVN24 broadcaster that the foreign ministry intended to summon the Russian ambassador to Poland and hand him a protest note.

Henryk Zdyb, the head of the village of Oserdow, said in an interview with the daily Gazeta Wyborcza that he saw the missile, saying it produced a whistling sound.

“I saw a rapidly moving object in the sky. It was illuminated and flying quite low over the border with Ukraine,” he told the paper.

Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago, there have been a number of intrusions into Polish airspace, triggering worry in the European Union and NATO member state and reminding people of how close the war is.

“We have to come to terms with the fact that the war is taking place right next to us, and we are part of the confrontation between the West and Russia,” commentator Artur Bartkiewicz wrote in the Rzeczpospolita newspaper Sunday.

In 2022, two Poles were killed in a missile blast. Western officials blamed those deaths on a Ukrainian air defense missile that went astray, but also accused Russia of culpability because it started the war, with the Ukrainian missiles launched in self-defense.

On Saturday night, one person was killed and four others were wounded in a Ukrainian missile attack on Sevastopol on the Russia-occupied Crimean peninsula, city Gov. Mikhail Razvozhaev said on his Telegram channel.

Gera and Hicks write for the Associated Press. Gera reported from Warsaw, Poland.

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Russia violates Poland’s airspace while Ukraine hits two large warships in Crimea

The cruise missile entered the polish airspace for as long as 39 seconds, article bookmarked.

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Poland has demanded an explanation from Moscow after a Russian cruise missile violated its airspace as it launched an attack on western Ukraine , the Polish armed forces said.

Missiles targeting the Lviv region during the early hours of Sunday morning passed close to the Polish border, with one entering its airspace for as long as 39 seconds.

The violation led to the Polish air force placing their F-16 fighter jets on high alert, with a warning that increased noise levels were expected in the southeastern part of the country.

“On 24 March at 4.23am (3.23am GMT), there was a violation of Polish airspace by one of the cruise missiles launched overnight by long-range aviation of the Russian Federation,” the Polish armed forces said in a post on X/Twitter.

“The object entered Polish space near the town of Oserdow (Lublin Voivodeship) and stayed there for 39 seconds. During the entire flight, it was observed by military radar systems,” it said, adding that all necessary procedures were launched to ensure the safety of Polish airspace.

“Polish and allied aircraft have been activated, which may result in increased noise levels, especially in the southeastern part of the country.”

Poland’s defence minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said the missile would have been shot down if there was an indication it was heading towards a target.

The foreign ministry has also said it will demand an explanation from Russia .

The ministry spokesperson said Poland has called on Russia “to stop terrorist air attacks on the inhabitants and territory of Ukraine, end the war and address the country’s internal problems”.

Russia’s missile attack on Ukraine was their third in the past four days, and the second to target the capital, Kyiv.

The governor of the Lviv region, Maksym Kozytskyi, said on the Telegram platform that critical infrastructure was hit, while no deaths or injuries were reported. Later, authorities said that rescuers had just put out a fire at a critical infrastructure facility in the Lviv region, which had been attacked with missiles and drones at night and in the morning.

An air raid siren in the capital lasted for over two hours as rockets entered in groups from the north.

Shortly afterwards, the Ukrainian military said that two Russian warships had been hit in attacks on the annexed Crimean peninsula.

“The defence forces of Ukraine successfully hit the Azov and Yamal large landing ships, a communications centre and also several infrastructure facilities of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in temporarily occupied Crimea ,” the armed forces said.

Moscow said air defences had shot down more than 10 missiles over the port of Sevastopol during the incident in the early hours.

Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Russian-installed governor of Sevastopol, said on the Telegram messaging app that a 65-year-old man was killed when three homes were hit by shrapnel.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin continued to peddle claims throughout the weekend that Ukraine had been involved in the Moscow terror attack, which saw 137 innocent civilians killed at a concert venue on Friday evening.

Appearing on TV on Saturday, Putin alleged a link between the gunmen and Ukraine, saying the assailants planned to flee there. He made no mention of the Islamic State group, which claimed responsibility, or of Kyiv’s denial of involvement.

In a video statement, Volodymyr Zelensky angrily rejected the claims, stating: “Instead of taking care of his Russian citizens and addressing them, this duffer Putin remained silent for a day, thinking about how to link this to Ukraine.

“Those hundreds of thousands of Russians who are now killing on Ukrainian soil would certainly be enough to deter any terrorists.”

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November 17, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Kathleen Magramo , Eliza Mackintosh , Jack Guy, Aditi Sangal and Adrienne Vogt , CNN

Our live coverage of Russia's war in Ukraine has moved here.

Top US general spoke with Ukrainian counterpart about Russian invasion

From CNN's Jamie Crawford

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley spoke today with his Ukrainian counterpart, Commander-in-Chief Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, according to a readout of the call provided by his spokesperson.

“They discussed the unprovoked and ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and exchanged perspectives and assessments. The Chairman reaffirmed unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Joint Staff spokesperson Col. Dave Butler said in the readout.

People in Ukraine's Kherson region try to return to normal — but the war is still dangerously close

From CNN's Vasco Cotovio

A Ukrainian man harvests corn from his backyard in the cold autumn rain. Next to the broken fence sits a rusting Russian tank, destroyed when Kyiv's military forced Russian forces to retreat from the west bank of the Dnieper river.  

In the absence of Russian soldiers, life is slowly returning to normal in the liberated areas of Kherson province. But even if the frontline has moved, the war remains a constant presence in the village of Dudchany, which sits on the Dnieper's west bank, with daily shelling a constant threat. 

"Two days ago there was shelling and shrapnel landed right here in our yard," said Olga Gritsuniak, 68, as she showed the remains of the weaponry. On Thursday, another five Russian rockets landed in her village.  

“Thank God we survived all this,” she said. 

Gritsuniak and her husband often hid in their basement when the Russians occupied the area, not just to escape the Ukrainian counterfire, but also to steer clear of Moscow’s armies. 

“We decided to stay. They didn’t touch some people, but some were missing… Some people were taken and beaten, young men,” she said. 

Gritsuniak doesn’t have power, gas or water, a concern as winter fast approaches, with temperatures expected to drop below zero in the coming days. 

Nearby, Lesya Koval, 59, is felling trees with her husband. Without power or gas, they’ll have to use wood for heating. She never doubted Ukrainian forces would retake Kherson and wants to forget the time spent under Russian occupation. 

“It was scary they could come anytime and check our houses at any time,” she said. “They kept asking if we had a better life with Ukrainians or them [Russians]. We had good life, were in our own land, minded our own business.”

She wishes life would soon return to normal – but a few meters away, the local kindergarten, with its collapsed roof and walls barely standing after persistent shelling, is a reminder that this is very much still an active war zone.   

“Even if Kherson has been liberated… they keep firing at us,” she said.

Far-right House Republicans, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, seek to cut off Ukraine aid

From CNN's Melanie Zanona

In a preview of the intra-party battle ahead, far-right House Republicans, led by MAGA firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, vowed Thursday to fight against Ukraine aid.

She said, at a news conference with other members, that she'd introduced an effort to force a vote on a resolution requiring the Biden administration to provide all documents related to the security assistance that has already been appropriated to Ukraine.

The long-shot bid does not have buy-in from members of the Republican leadership, though they were given a heads-up about the news conference. 

The far-right members also seized on House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy’s previous promise of no more “blank checks” to Ukraine, even though McCarthy later clarified he just wants to ensure greater oversight of any federal dollars. 

“Is Ukraine now the 51st state of the United States of America and what position does Zelensky have in our government?” Greene said, referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“I will not vote for one more dollar to Ukraine,” added Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Some background: While the anti-Ukraine wing of the party only represents a fraction of the GOP, this group could have leverage in a razor-thin majority.

CNN projects that Republicans will win  control of the House  – but their majority will be a narrow one. As of Thursday evening,  CNN projected  Republicans will control 218 seats compared to 210 for the Democrats.   If the current leaders of the remaining uncalled races wind up winning, that would leave Republicans with 221 seats.

Poland will move quickly with investigation into missile incident, official says

From CNN's Niamh Kennedy, Zoe Cantley and Anna Gorzkowska

A Polish official told CNN on Thursday that his country will move quickly with its investigation into the missile that landed on the Polish village of Przewodow on Tuesday.

Speaking to CNN’s Isa Soares, Polish Ministry for Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lukasz Jasina said that Poland is pushing ahead with its investigation into the incident, adding that the authorities expect to receive the results in the next few days.

Jasina said that Ukrainian experts will also be allowed access to the site, stressing there first needs to be “some legal arrangements to create a good space for their expertise.”

Some background: Earlier today, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that Ukrainian investigators will be allowed to observe the investigation, “but when it comes to participation in proceedings and access to documents and information, it requires specific treaty grounds, specific grounds in the field of international law and international agreements.”

Jasina, who told CNN that he comes from the region where the missile exploded, said the mood among his friends and neighbors is “very very sad.”

“Russian threat is direct not only for Ukraine but also for Poland and other European states. That war is against all of us, against our values, against Europe, against our style of life,” he added.

10 million Ukrainians are without electricity after another wave of missile attacks, Zelensky says

From CNN's Denis Lapin in Kyiv and Tim Lister

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country is enduring emergency power cuts Thursday night after more Russian missile attacks, just as temperatures fall to freezing and below.

In his daily video message , Zelensky said crews are doing everything to normalize supply, but there were "emergency power cuts again in addition to the planned stabilization ones."

"As of now, more than 10 million Ukrainians are without electricity," he said — the same number as on Tuesday night after a barrage of missile attacks.

Most of the outages are in Vinnytsia, Odesa, Sumy and Kyiv regions, the president said.

Yasno, a power supplier in Kyiv, said the city had experienced emergency blackouts all day, with the grid having less than half of its normal supply. It said power engineers were trying to stabilize the system to avoid even greater damage. 

Zelensky said that dozens of people were wounded as a result of a missile strike in Dnipro. In Zaporizhzhia, seven bodies had been recovered from the debris of a residential building destroyed by Russian shelling on Wednesday night, he said.

"Again and again, we repeat to our partners that only full protection of Ukrainian skies will save both Ukraine and Europe from many possible escalations of Russian aggression and will definitely encourage Russia to truly end the war," Zelensky said as Ukraine endures waves of missile strikes.

Zelensky also welcomed the renewal for four months of the Black Sea grain export accord and the verdict at the MH17 trial in the Netherlands.

Brittney Griner moved to Russian penal colony

From CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen, Zahra Ullah and Kylie Atwood

US basketball star Brittney Griner has been moved to a penal colony in Russia’s Mordovia region, her legal team told CNN in a statement Thursday.

“We can confirm that Brittney began serving her sentence at IK-2 in Mordovia. We visited her early this week. Brittney is doing as well as could be expected and trying to stay strong as she adapts to a new environment,” Griner’s lawyers, Maria Blagovolina and Alexander Boykov, told CNN on Thursday.

Griner's lawyers said they would like to “thank everyone who has expressed care for her,” and that they have received “numerous messages of support.”

They added that “considering that this is a very challenging period for her,” there will be no further comment from them.

The US State Department said that Griner’s location has still not been shared with them by the Russian government. 

“We are aware of reports of her location, and in frequent contact with Ms. Griner's legal team,” a State Department spokesperson said Thursday.

“However, the Russian Federation has still failed to provide any official notification for such a move of a U.S. citizen, which we strongly protest. The Embassy has continued to press for more information about her transfer and current location,” the spokesperson added.

Griner's agent, Lindsay Colas, also told CNN that the Russian legal team has seen the WNBA star at the penal colony, where she has begun serving her 9-year sentence .

“Despite the fact she is alone and now nearing her ninth month in detention separated from her loved ones, she is trying to stay strong. At this time, we will not be sharing any further details, but want to express our deepest thanks to the Biden Administration, the Richardson Center, and to everyone who has reached out to offer words of encouragement to her,” Colas said.

Griner was arrested at a Moscow airport shortly before the war began and accused by Russian prosecutors of trying to smuggle  less than 1 gram  of cannabis oil in her luggage.

The Russian region of Mordovia, which is more than 300 miles from Moscow, is the same region where American Paul Whelan is being held. The former US Marine is serving 16 years in a different penal colony on espionage charges that he denies.

What is life like in a penal colony? While the conditions vary greatly in different Russian penal colonies, there are reports of political prisoners being placed in harsh conditions. Prisoners can be subjected to “solitary confinement or punitive stays in psychiatric units,” the State Department’s human rights report says.

Russian law also allows for forced labor in penal colonies, and in some cases, inmates have been tortured to death, the report says. There are also reports of prison authorities recruiting inmates to abuse other inmates, the report adds.

“No indication” that Poland is dealing with a direct threat, says Polish government spokesman

From CNN's Antonia Mortensen and Chris Liakos

There is “no indication” that Poland is dealing with a direct threat, Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller told reporters in Warsaw on Thursday, following Tuesday’s incident that left two people dead when a missile landed in the Polish village of Przewodow.

Based on the materials that have been collected by expert teams, “the reason for this event were Ukraine's defensive actions against Russia's offensive actions. There is no indication that we are dealing with a direct threat to our country,” he added. “At the moment, we know that on Nov. 15, Russia, which carried out a massive missile attack on the territory of Ukraine, led to a situation in which the Ukrainian anti-aircraft forces had to take defensive measures.”

Ukrainian officials said on Thursday that their investigators were getting access to the site of the blast.

Polish President Andrzej Duda said earlier today that Ukrainian investigators will be allowed to observe the investigation, “but when it comes to participation in proceedings and access to documents and information, it requires specific treaty grounds, specific grounds in the field of international law and international agreements.”

Russian Foreign Ministry announces automatic extension of grain deal for 120 days

From CNN's Katharina Krebs

The UN-brokered deal that allows Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports during the war will be extended for 120 days in the same format, according to a news release from the Russian Foreign Ministry published on Thursday.

“The four-party deal by Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the United Nations, signed in Istanbul on July 22, will expire on November 18. The text of the document provides for its automatic extension for another 120 days in the absence of objections from any of the parties,” the ministry said.

“No such objections have been received,” it added.

According to the ministry, Moscow “has clearly and openly emphasised that the agreements on Ukrainian food and the effective implementation of the Russian-UN Memorandum on the normalisation of Russian agricultural exports is a package deal, and that remains unchanged.”

“We took note of the intensification of the UN Secretariat’s effort to fulfill its obligations in this regard and the information provided to us on the intermediate results of its work to remove obstacles to Russian fertiliser and food exports. All these issues must be resolved within 120 days, the period for which the package deal is to be extended,” the ministry said.

The ministry added that “any attempt to use the humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea for military provocations will receive a harsh response.”

Some context:  Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday  cast doubt  on the future of  the agreement , saying it depended on  existing terms being met . Earlier this month, Russia rejoined the deal after saying it was pulling out.

Ukraine and Russia together account for  nearly a third  of global wheat exports, and the grain deal has played a crucial role in lowering the price of wheat and other commodities globally.

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Russian Cruise Missile Flies Through Polish Airspace During Air Strike On Ukraine – Reports

According to the Polish Government, a Russian missile crossed Poland’s airspace during an attack on Ukraine.

According to General staff of the Polish Armed Forces, an “unidentified object”, later identified as a Russian cruise missile, entered Polish airspace early in the morning on Dec. 29, 2023.

The missile travelled about 40 km (25 miles) for 3 minutes, into Poland’s airspace. Polish and NATO radar systems tracked the missile and F-16s “patrolling the area” were directed towards the area of the violation (according to some sources, the F-16s were scrambled after the intrusion).

Informujemy, że w piątek o godz. 7.12 czasu lokalnego, od strony granicy z Ukrainą, doszło do naruszenia polskiej przestrzeni powietrznej przez obiekt, który po niecałych trzech minutach opuścił terytorium Polski. Identyfikujemy go jako rosyjską rakietę manewrującą. Przez cały… pic.twitter.com/5Bf2WZZCrZ — Sztab Generalny WP (@SztabGenWP) December 29, 2023

The official statement roughly translates as follow.

We would like to inform you that on Friday at At 7.12 local time, from the side of the border with Ukraine, there was a violation of Polish airspace by an object that left Polish territory after less than three minutes. We identify it as a Russian cruise missile. At all times, the missile’s flight path was tracked by radar systems, both Polish and allied. Air defense systems remained ready for use. In addition, F-16 aircraft patrolling the area were directed to the area where the missile crossed Polish airspace. Additionally, in order to verify data from radar systems, forces and resources from the land forces, air forces and territorial defense forces were deployed to trace the object’s flight trajectory on the earth’s surface. We would like to thank the inhabitants of the Lublin region for their vigilance, cooperation and understanding towards the actions of soldiers of the Polish Army and officers of other uniformed services. Further information will be provided on an ongoing basis.

The alert coincided with what Ukraine has called Russia’s biggest day of air strikes since its war began. According to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, a total of 158 missiles and UAVs were fired against Ukraine; 87 missiles and 27 Shaheds were shot down by Ukrainian air defense.

This morning, russia carried out the most massive air attack since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. The occupiers used a variety of types of ballistic missiles, air-launched cruise missiles, and Shahed UAVs to target civilian targets. A total of 158 missiles and UAVs… pic.twitter.com/oFtnhacj9r — Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) December 29, 2023

MASSIVE AIR ATTACK. DECEMBER 29, 114 OF 158 AIR TARGETS DESTROYED 🫡🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/jXpAa4CtrR — Ukrainian Air Force (@KpsZSU) December 29, 2023

Little is known about the type of cruise missile that intruded into the Polish airspace: among the weaponry used by the Russian Aerospace Forces in Ukraine, there are the KH-101 / KH-555 /KH-55 air-launched cruise missiles, the S-300 s in surface-to-surface mode and the Kinzhal aero-ballistic hypersonic missiles.

Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia. Today, Russia attacked Ukraine with more than 122 missiles. They hit a maternity hospital, educational facilities, a shopping mall, residential buildings and private homes. Support 🇺🇦 with @U24_gov_ua — https://t.co/hkaoRhaEUZ pic.twitter.com/cUEVmfjbEU — Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) December 29, 2023

There were rumors on social media, not confirmed by any side thus far, that a Russian Tu-22M3 Backfire was shot down during the air strikes. In the last few days, the Ukrainian Air Force said it had managed to shoot down a total of six Su-34 Fullback strike aircraft ( three of those on Dec. 22; one on Dec. 24 and two more on Dec. 25).

President Andrzej Duda convened an emergency security meeting; NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg released a statement on X saying that he had spoken with Duda about the “missile incident” and said NATO remains vigilant and monitoring the situation “as the facts are established.”

Spoke with President @AndrzejDuda about the missile incident in #Poland . #NATO stands in solidarity with our valued Ally, is monitoring the situation & we will remain in contact as the facts are established. NATO remains vigilant. — Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) December 29, 2023

This is not the first time an unauthorized object has entered Poland’s airspace from Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s invasion. In November 2022, two farmers died when a missile, believed to be a Ukrainian air defense missile, caused an explosion outside the rural eastern Polish village of Przewodow, about 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) west of the Ukrainian border.

• Polish airspace
• Russian cruise missile
• Ukrainian Air Force

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Russian missile strikes in Ukraine kill 8 and wound 12

Russian forces overnight attacked Ukraine with drones and missiles, killing at least six people and wounding 11 more in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, local officials reported. Governor of the Kharkiv region Oleh Syniehubov said missile strikes on the city damaged residential buildings, a gas station, a kindergarten, a cafe, a shop and cars.

Rescue workers extinguish the fire at the site of a Russian drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, early Saturday April 6, 2024. At least 6 people were killed in Kharkiv in the overnight attacks on Saturday and at least 10 people were injured with blast wounds and shrapnel, said regional governor Oleh Syniehubov. High-rise buildings, a gas station, a shop and a car were damaged. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian missile strikes in Ukraine overnight and on Saturday killed eight people and wounded 12 more, officials said.

According to the governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleh Syniehubov, six people were killed and 11 were wounded in overnight missile attacks on the city of Kharkiv, which is Ukraine’s second largest. The attack damaged residential buildings, a gas station, a kindergarten, a cafe, a shop and cars.

On Saturday afternoon, a further strike on Kharkiv killed another person and left one more person wounded, said Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov. Another missile strike killed a civilian in the southern Odesa region, its governor Oleh Kiper reported.

Overall, Russia fired 32 Iranian-made Shahed drones and six missiles at Ukraine overnight, according to the air force commander. Ukrainian air defense forces shot down three cruise missiles and 28 drones, Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk said in a statement. “Russian killers continue to terrorize Ukrainians and attack Kharkiv and other peaceful cities,” he said.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said the overnight attacks targeted Ukraine’s military enterprises that “produced and repaired armored vehicles and vehicles, drones” as well as “military airfields” and areas where “foreign mercenaries” were allegedly stationed. The ministry claimed all the set targets were hit.

It also said that Ukraine on Saturday morning fired Vampire rockets at Russia. All 10 of them were shot down over Russia’s border region of Belgorod by air defense systems, the ministry said.

Belgorod Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said the rockets were shot down as they were approaching the city of Belgorod, which is the capital of the region of the same name, and added that 12 residential buildings in the city sustained damage. In a nearby village, a private house burned down and several other buildings were damaged , Gladkov said.

It wasn’t immediately clear from his statement whether the damage was inflicted by falling debris from the intercepted rockets or whether some of them actually hit those buildings.

Battles on the ground

On the ground in Ukraine, Russian forces were advancing, and pushing back against them was “difficult,” said Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine’s armed forces.

Syrksyi said the situation in the Bakhmut area in the partially occupied eastern Donetsk region was particularly challenging. He said Russian forces are carrying out offensive operations day and night, using assault groups with the support of armored vehicles, as well as assaults on foot.

Fierce battles are taking place east of the town of Chasiv Yar, which Ukraine still controls and which is located near the occupied city of Bakhmut .

Russian forces are trying to break through defensive lines there, Syrskyi said on the messaging app Telegram, adding, “Chasiv Yar remains under our control, all enemy attempts to break through to the settlement have failed.”

Near Avdiivka, another city in the Donetsk region held by the Russians , the fiercest battles were occurring in Pervomaiskyi and Vodyanyi, according to the official. He also said the situation is tense on the southern and northeastern parts of the front line.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Poland’s Response: Aircraft Alerted as Russian Cruise Missile Enters Airspace

A ccording to reports from Warsaw’s military, a Russian cruise missile fired toward western Ukraine breached the airspace of NATO member Poland early on Sunday.

The missile’s trajectory led it into Polish airspace near the eastern village of Oserdów, situated along the border with Ukraine, at approximately 4:30 a.m. local time (11:30 p.m. Saturday E.T.), as confirmed by authorities in Warsaw.

“Polish and allied aviation resources were activated in response,” stated the Polish military in a social media announcement. This activation “may result in increased noise levels, especially in the southeastern part of the country,” noted another post from Warsaw.

The Polish military further informed that Moscow had targeted western Ukrainian towns utilizing its long-range aviation fleet. Polish radar systems diligently tracked the missile’s path throughout its duration in NATO airspace, totaling 39 seconds.

In late December 2023, Polish military authorities reported an unidentified object breaching Polish airspace from the direction of the Ukraine border.

The involvement of neighboring countries in such incidents adds to concerns about the conflict in Ukraine potentially expanding beyond its current scope. NATO nations have been cautious about direct engagement in the Ukrainian war, given the alliance’s commitment that an attack on one member constitutes an attack on all, thus potentially escalating the conflict significantly.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s air force disclosed that Russia had launched an assault with 29 Kh-101 and Kh-555 cruise missiles, deployed by long-range aviation aircraft stationed at the Engels-2 base in southern Russia, with 18 of these missiles intercepted by Ukrainian air defenses.

Reports from Ukrainian officials in the Lviv region and around Kyiv detailed multiple cruise missile strikes and the deployment of Russia’s Kinzhal (Dagger) air-launched missiles, which Moscow has touted as hypersonic weaponry.

Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, characterized the overnight attacks as “the third massive missile assault on Ukraine in the past four days.”

Furthermore, Poland’s military noted “intense long-range aviation activity” from Russia early on Sunday, suggesting it was linked to the ongoing air and missile strikes against targets within Ukraine.

Earlier incidents included Russia launching four anti-aircraft guided missiles and 34 Shahed drones over eastern Ukraine on Saturday, followed by 151 attacks utilizing 88 missiles and 63 strike drones on the previous day. Additionally, on Thursday morning, Kyiv reported the destruction of 29 Russian cruise missiles and two ballistic missiles.

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Russia-Ukraine war latest: 'Damage' to nuclear reactor revealed in images after 'three direct hits'

Donald Trump will press Ukraine to give up territory if he is re-elected as US president, according to a US media report. Meanwhile, our question form is open again to submit a question for our military analysts.

Monday 8 April 2024 18:26, UK

• The big picture : What's happening with the war as we enter a new week?
• Trump would press Ukraine to give up territory if re-elected - report
• Three 'direct hits' at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant
• Image shows 'damage' on roof of nuclear reactor

Ask a question or make a comment

Our comments box is open once again for you to submit a question on the Ukraine war for Sky News military analysts or correspondents.

We'll pick the best one to answer each week.

We are pausing our coverage - thank you for reading.

The main developments today have been:

• Russia has claimed Ukraine launched a drone attack against the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, and provided images;
• Ukraine has denied any involvement;
• The IAEA said there were three "direct hits";
• Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, has arrived in China for talks on topics including Ukraine;
• Donald Trump will press Ukraine to give up territory if he is re-elected as US president, according to a US media report;
• Ukraine must "win this war" and if it loses, "we all lose", Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron and his French counterpart have warned.

We will be back with more updates from the war in Ukraine tomorrow.

These pictures show people working at a Ukrainian thermal power plant that was damaged in a recent Russian missile strike.

The second picture down shows a collection of destroyed pressure gauges.

The location is undisclosed.

Russia has asked Kazakhstan to prepare to supply 100,000 tonnes of gasoline.

It is said to be because of shortages exacerbated by Ukrainian drone attacks, three industry sources told Reuters.

One of those sources said a deal had been agreed.

Neither the Russian nor Kazakhstani energy ministries replied to requests for comment.

Drone attacks reportedly stopped 14% of Russian primary oil refining capacity by the end of March.

Belarus has already agreed to help Russia with gasoline supply, Reuters said.

The authorities have said the domestic situation is stable and stockpiles are sufficient.

Russia is normally a net exporter of fuel.

Russia has hit up to 80 percent of Ukraine's conventional power plants and half its hydroelectric ones, Ukrainian energy minister German Galushchenko has said.

Recent attacks have been the heaviest since the war began, Mr Galushchenko added, according to the AFP news agency.

Moscow is believed to have launched almost daily strikes on Ukraine's power grid since late last month.

Kharkiv, Ukraine's second city, has suffered blackouts.

"Up to 80% of thermal generation was attacked," Mr Galushchenko told journalists in Kyiv.

"More than half of hydro generation and a large number of substations." 

It is the "largest attack on Ukraine's energy sector" since the conflict started in February 2022, the minister said.

Mr Galushchenko said the "scale and impact of these attacks is much greater" than earlier ones.

The country's largest nuclear power station, in Zaporizhzhia, was seized by Russian troops not long after they invaded. 

As we have been reporting, Russia is claiming Ukraine attacked the plant with drones - something Kyiv denies. 

As we have been reporting today, there were three "direct hits" at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station in southern Ukraine after an apparent drone attack, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said.

The first of these images is said to show damage on the top of reactor six. 

It is a still taken from a video provided by the Press Service of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Russia has been in control of the plant since the early days of its invasion of Ukraine.

The second image, below, is said to show the remains of a Ukrainian drone that was shot down over the power station.

Ukraine has denied any involvement. 

Whoever is to blame, Rafael Grossi, head of the IAEA, has described the development as a "major escalation of the nuclear safety and security dangers" facing the plant.

More from Zaporizhzhia, and at least six people have been injured in a Russian missile attack on an industrial facility in the southern Ukrainian city, local authorities said.

Regional governor Ivan Fedorov did not say what sort of facility it was in a message on Telegram.

On Friday, an unidentified industrial facility there was struck in another Russian missile strike, killing four people.

Residential buildings were damaged too.

It is unclear whether Monday's strike was against the same site.

A Ukrainian drone fell on to the roof of a nuclear reactor at the Zaporizhzhia power station in southern Ukraine, Russia has claimed.

"Today, a kamikaze drone was shot down over the plant," the Russian-controlled plant said.

"It fell on the roof of unit six," it added, below a picture of reactor six, which it said had been shut down.

Russian forces took control of the plant in 2022 shortly after their invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine has denied any involvement in a drone attack.

Earlier, Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said there had been three "direct hits" on the plant.

One casualty was reported and "damage at unit six has not compromised nuclear safety", the IAEA said.

Mr Grossi said: "This is a major escalation of the nuclear safety and security dangers facing the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. 

"Such reckless attacks significantly increase the risk of a major nuclear accident and must cease immediately. 

"Attacking a nuclear power plant is an absolute no go."

US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen says she had "difficult conversations" about Ukraine on a four-day visit to China.

America is concerned that Chinese companies are supporting Russia in its military invasion of its neighbour.

Ms Yellen warned that any banks which facilitate the sale of military or dual-use goods to Russia could face US sanctions. 

"I stressed that companies, including those in the PRC [People's Republic of China], must not provide material support for Russia's war and that they will face significant consequences if they do," she said.

Asked about her warning, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said the US should "not smear or attack the normal state-to-state relations between China and Russia and should not harm the legitimate rights and interests of China and Chinese enterprises". 

Ms Yellen, who formerly chaired the US Federal Reserve, met the governor of China's central bank, Pan Gongsheng, on Monday. 

Ukraine must "win this war" and if it loses, "we all lose", the foreign secretary and his French counterpart have warned.

Lord Cameron and Stephane Sejourne also said: "The costs of failing to support Ukraine now will be far greater than the costs of repelling Putin."

Writing a joint article in The Daily Telegraph, they said: "We must do more to ensure we defeat Russia. 

"The world is watching - and will judge us if we fail."

They added: "Britain and France are proud of the support we have provided to Ukraine, from unprecedented sanctions to co-ordinated deliveries of the first long-range missile systems, Scalp and Storm Shadow. 

"Just last month, the first Ukrainian pilots graduated from training with the Royal Air Force to start training with the Armée de l'air et de l'espace, as part of a programme to build up Ukraine's ability to fly modern F-16 fighter jets."

They went on: "Together, France and Britain will reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine at the European Political Community Summit, to be held at Blenheim Palace in July.  

"We will also ensure a productive Nato summit in Washington this summer."

Lord Cameron is visiting Washington this week, where he is expected to urge US politicians to approve a new package of aid for Ukraine.

These pictures show firefighters working at the site of a Russian air strike in Kharkiv.

Three people were wounded in the northeastern region of Ukraine, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov. 

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Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian city of Kharkiv leaves at least 6 dead

April 6, 2024 / 7:56 AM EDT / AP

Russian forces overnight attacked Ukraine with drones and missiles, killing at least six people and wounding 11 more in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, local officials reported.

Governor of the Kharkiv region Oleh Syniehubov said missile strikes on the city damaged residential buildings, a gas station, a kindergarten, a cafe, a shop and cars.  Kharkiv is only about 18 miles from the eastern border with Russia.

Overall, Russia fired 32 Iranian-made Shahed drones and six missiles at Ukraine overnight, according to the air force commander. Ukrainian air defense forces shot down three cruise missiles and 28 drones, Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk said in a statement. "Russian killers continue to terrorize Ukrainians and attack Kharkiv and other peaceful cities," he said.

The Russian military has not commented on the strikes, but said that Ukraine on Saturday morning fired Vampire rockets at Russia. All 10 of them were shot down over Russia's border region of Belgorod by air defense systems, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

On the ground in Ukraine, Russian forces were advancing, and pushing back against them was "difficult," said Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine's armed forces.

Syrksyi said the situation in the Bakhmut area in the partially occupied eastern Donetsk region was particularly challenging. He said Russian forces are carrying out offensive operations day and night, using assault groups with the support of armored vehicles, as well as assaults on foot.

Fierce battles are taking place east of the town of Chasiv Yar, which Ukraine still controls and which is located near the occupied city of Bakhmut.

Russian forces are trying to break through defensive lines there, Syrskyi said on the messaging app Telegram, adding that "Chasiv Yar remains under our control, all enemy attempts to break through to the settlement have failed."

Near Avdiivka, another city in the Donetsk region held by the Russians, the fiercest battles were occurring in Pervomaiskyi and Vodyanyi, according to the official. He also said the situation is tense on the southern and northeastern parts of the front line.

In January, more than 40 Russian missiles slammed into Ukraine's two largest cities , killing at least seven and leaving 60 more wounded, according to Ukrainian officials, as Moscow again dismissed any diplomatic resolution to the  two-year war  backed by Kyiv and its Western supporters. The Russian missiles targeted Ukraine's capital Kyiv and Kharkiv, damaging about 30 residential buildings in the latter and shattering around 1,000 apartment windows, leaving residents exposed to frigid winter weather, regional  Syniehubov said.

Mayor Ihor Terekhov of Kharkiv was quoted by the French news agency AFP as saying an entire section of a multi-floor apartment building was toppled and an unknown number of people left trapped under the rubble.

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Ukraine pleads for air defence aid after Russia launches more missile strikes on Kyiv

At least five people injured and a three-storey building damaged in latest wave of strikes

Russia has launched its third wave of missile strikes against Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in five days, as part of its escalating aerial bombardment of the city. Five people were injured in the strike, with two of them taken to hospital, said the Kyiv mayor, Vitali Klitschko, as Ukraine’s foreign minister called on international allies to supply more air defences to his country.

The injuries and damage appear to have been the result of falling missile debris as the Ukrainian air force said it had shot down two missiles over the city.

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, renewed his appeal to western partners to provide more weaponry to protect against the unrelenting aerial attacks. “We never tire of repeating that Ukraine needs more air defence,” he said. “This is security for our cities and saves human lives.”

Frontlines in the war have remained largely static despite recent renewed and highly costly Russian efforts to advance in the Donbas region and the capture of some settlements.

Monday’s strikes occurred amid Russian attempts to suggest a link between Friday’s deadly terrorist attack on a Moscow concert hall and Ukraine. The attack has been claimed by Islamic State, whose media channel released body camera footage from devices worn by the assailants, who have been identified as citizens of Tajikistan.

Analysts have suggested that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, may however try to use the attack, which killed 137 people, as a pretext to escalate attacks on Ukraine.

On Thursday, Russia attacked Kyiv for the first time in six weeks, firing more than two dozen missiles before dawn local time. On Friday, Russia unleashed a massive attack against Ukraine’s energy sector, saying the assault was retaliation for recent strikes on Russian soil.

The Monday morning strikes on Kyiv badly damaged a three-storey building, officials said. “In the (central) Pechersk district, a multi-storey non-residential building was damaged,” the city’s military administration wrote on Telegram.

The US ambassador to Kyiv, Bridget Brink, said Russia had used hypersonic missiles to attack the Ukrainian capital. “Over the last five days, Russia has launched hundreds of missiles and drones against a sovereign country,” she said.

“There are no atrocities Russian bastards would not commit, including an attempt of a ballistic strike at the heart of a multimillion city,” Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said on X. “This is a reminder that Ukraine urgently requires more air defence, particularly Patriot systems and missiles capable of repelling any Russian attack,” he said. Russia fired two ballistic missiles at Kyiv from occupied Crimea in the daylight attack, but both were intercepted above the city, Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said. Several explosions were heard in the city, in the latest scare for residents. Both Russia and Ukraine have increased the tempo of their air attacks in recent weeks as Kyiv, which has struggled to find weapons and soldiers after more than two years of war, has promised to retaliate by taking the fighting to Russian soil.

A number of Ukrainian air attacks on Saturday on the Russian border region of Belgorod, adjoining Ukraine killed two people and injured at least seven, the regional governor said.

Russia also struck critical infrastructure in Ukraine’s western region of Lviv with missiles early on Sunday, in a major airstrike that saw one Russian cruise missile briefly fly into Polish airspace, prompting Warsaw to summon Sergey Andreev, Russia’s ambassador to Poland.

However, Andreev failed to appear for a meeting at the Polish foreign ministry on Monday to be delivered a protest letter, in an apparent serious breach of diplomatic protocol. The ministry suggested his no-show had led Poland’s government to wonder whether he was “able to properly represent the interests of the Russian Federation in Warsaw”.

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